The Mockingbird's Claws
by GameofCrowns
Summary: What if the former Lord Baelish did not gain Hoster Tullys, but Tywin Lannister's favor? What if little Petyr had been fostered by the Lannisters and not the Tullys? This is the story of a mockingbird amongst lions and how his life influences the fate of Westeros. Slightly AU. Might change rating later.
1. 1 - Petyr

**A/N:** This story is just a dumb idea that popped into my mind.  
I had to adjust the age of the twins upwards a little bit.  
Let me know what you think. Should I continue this?

* * *

Everything here seemed to him as if it was part of one of the many stories his nurse had once told him. On the Fingers, everything was bleak and stony and life was simple. The old tower in which he had lived with his father didn't even have a name. But here, everything was different at first sight. Well, there were rocks too - huge ones, to be exact.

Curiously, Petyr let his gaze wander out of the window of the carriage and examined the castle which was located high up on a rock. His father had told him that the castle was impregnable - and that was what it looked like. Like an unfriendly giant stretching out his hands towards him. "Casterly Rock," he mumbled softly to himself and leaned back, sighing. Petyr's nurse lovingly stroked his brown hair.

"You have been granted a great honor, Petyr."

Petyr sighed again. "I know." He wasn't quite sure if he should be happy or sad. On the one hand, there never happened anything exciting on the Fingers, but on the other hand it was his home. His father had stayed on the Fingers and had sent him to his new "family" with nothing more than an old carriage, provisions and a bag full of belongings. The closer they came to Casterly Rock, the more the sound of hustle and bustle and the smell of food filled the air. When he heard the sound of a gate opening, he closed his eyes for a moment.

"We're here, Littlefinger. You can get out." At the words of his nurse, he opened his eyes again. Although he already counted eight namedays, he was quite small for his age. The children of the few servants of his father had reminded him often enough. Sometimes they left it at calling him "Littlefinger" and sometimes they threw pebbles at him when nobody was watching. This nickname had been adopted by the adults at some point, and he was beginning to get used to it. But he didn't get used to the other children on the Fingers. Once, they had pretended that he was allowed to play hide and seek with them. So, while he closed his eyes and counted to ten in a small chamber, they locked him up. Only hours later had a servant found him there.  
At least he had escaped _that_ now - unless the children in the Westerlands behaved in the same way. His father had told him a lot about the Lannisters. If one wanted to believe his words, they were proud, rich, generous, strong-willed and cunning people who always paid their debts. Petyr, however, did not believe that. No one could unite so many good things at once. Everyone had weaknesses.  
When he got out of the carriage, a pleasant breeze immediately blew towards him. Much warmer than in his homeland. His gaze fell on a middle-aged, dark-haired woman who had placed her hands on the shoulders of two children.

"Jaime, Cersei, welcome Petyr Baelish. The new ward of your father and your new playmate." Cersei and Jaime were a little younger than him, and yet Jaime was already taller than him. "Hello." Jaime nodded at him with a smile and Petyr returned the smile with relief. Maybe it wasn't so bad here. The girl also greeted him by making an elegant curtsey.

"It is a pleasure to meet you." Her hair shone in the sunlight like liquid gold and her eyes like green gems. When he thought about it, she reminded Petyr of a cat. A real lioness. Her twin brother looked like her male counterpart. And Petyr stood there, small and puny in his grey, worn out clothes. "The pleasure is mine.," he replied and nodded to both of them.

"Come with me," the woman spoke again. "My name is Elenya and I will take good care of you from now on. I'll show you your room for now." Petyr nodded obediently and followed the woman into the castle and up the stairs. Compared to his father's tower, this dwelling here was a monster. A spectacular palace in which guards patrolled everywhere, with a golden lion on their chest. Petyr suppressed the urge to wish each of them a good day and went on. In front of a tower room, his companion stopped and opened the door for him. Cersei and Jaime had followed them with some distance. "I hope you like it.," Elenya said to him.

"I helped with the furnishing and decorating," Cersei proudly remarked, pointing to the red room. "Look!" The golden lion was again to be found on the bed linen. Apparently, his new family immediately wanted to make it clear to him where his loyalty should lie from now on. "It is very pretty, mylady. Although I prefer green." Cersei made a face. "Red is much better than green."

"I think green is better, too," Jaime interfered and promptly got a deadly look from Cersei. "That's enough now, children. Let him arrive first." With a warm smile Elenya turned to Petyr again. "Set yourself up a bit and freshen up, then you can go to sleep. It is late. I'll check on you tomorrow morning and wake you up. Then you will also get to know the Lord."

As soon as she had finished speaking, Elenya gently pushed the twins out the door and closed it. Petyr let himself fall backwards onto his bed. It felt much softer than the one he had slept in at home and smelled pleasantly of lavender. As soon as he closed his eyes, he fell asleep from exhaustion without unpacking his bag or undressing. For some reason he dreamed of a green-eyed, gold-tipped cat snuggling up to a mockingbird in a dark dungeon that night.


	2. 2 - Petyr

The next morning, Petyr was awakened by a small hand shaking his shoulder. Humming, he turned to the other side, but then the shaking only became more intense. Half asleep, Petyr tried to open his eyes. "Who... What's going on," he croaked with a blink. His eyes felt as heavy as lead. Was it already bright outside at all?

"Good. You are awake...finally. You are even more difficult to wake than Jaime. And you snore." When Petyr forced himself to open his eyes properly and turned back to the other side, he recognized the graceful figure. Cersei. Even in her white nightgown she looked as graceful as ever. Moreover, any doubt that the sun had not risen yet was now erased.

Immediately, Petyr sat down in bed. "Mylady," he said with as much dignity as he was able to when he was drunk asleep and his hair was shredded. "Why are you visiting me at such a time?" Cersei smiled meaningfully. There was a sparkle in her eyes that Petyr could not interpret. "I want to show you something." Petyr almost rolled his eyes. Actually, he would much rather go back to sleep now, so that he was well rested tomorrow, but Cersei left him no choice. "A secret. Come with me."

Who was he to reject Cersei Lannister? He could not afford that. Especially not because he had just arrived. What would his father probably say if he was sent home again straight away? No, that would be a shame for his family. A nod of the eight-year-old was apparently enough for the young lady as an answer, because she took his hand and dragged him out of bed. While she herself had something majestic in her nightly robe, he felt like a plucked bird.

Cersei became faster and faster, so Petyr almost couldn't keep up with her. She led him far away from his room. So far that he wondered if he would ever find his way back later. Nevertheless, he didn't ask any questions. She finally stopped in front of an inconspicuous door in the middle of one of the long corridors and turned to Petyr. "Here it is." Without another word of explanation, she opened the door and walked into the room. The room was arranged quite lovelessly and equipped only with a bed, a cupboard and a cradle in the middle of the room. Quiet, cheerful babbling filled the room. The woman who had been sitting on the bed until just now and who Petyr recognized as a nurse rose immediately when she saw Cersei. "Mylady." Without paying any attention to her, Cersei approached the cradle and pulled the blanket away from the small bundle. Petyr barely dared to get closer. What did she expect from him?

"Come on. Look at the monster." Only slowly, Petyr put one foot in front of the other until he stopped in front of the cradle. Inside was a little baby, not older than a few moons, maybe a year. His head seemed to be too big for his body and his arms and legs too short and his eyes shone in two different colours, green and black. Nevertheless, Petyr couldn't help but find the little thing cute. And pitiful. Smiling, he reached out his hand to the baby and let it reach for his finger and hold it. This beautiful moment, however, was destroyed by Cersei who pulled at the little boy's leg until he began to cry. Cersei rejected the nurse's objections harshly. Petyr now knew that this infant could only be Tyrion Lannister. Rumors about him were already widespread. Rumors of horns and fire-breathing eyes and a split tongue, but what Petyr saw was nothing but a baby. "I don't think he looks like a monster. Why are you hurting him?"

Cersei made a face at the baby. "You are just like Jaime, Petyr. He is a monster. He killed my mother." She shrugged her shoulders. "He won't live much longer anyway. So it doesn't matter." As if she had fulfilled her task now, Cersei turned around and ran towards the door again. Petyr stayed at the cradle and gently stroked Tyrion's cheek until he calmed down and looked up at him chuckling. Only after he had covered him up, he followed Cersei out again. She didn't look at him once on the entire way back. Therefore, Petyr found the way endless. Perhaps she had hoped to find someone who shared her opinion about her little brother, but Petyr did not believe in the guilt of an infant.

When they had almost arrived at Petyr's tower room again, he began to speak. "He will not have it easy. Not in a world like this. Those who are not so strong and smaller than the others will always have to fight their way through." He knew what he was talking about. Cersei still didn't seem to notice him at all, so he continued. "Do you think he wanted his mother to die? He now has her just as little as you do. And he was never allowed to get to know her. If none of you takes care of him, he will be all alone. You could be a role model for him. Show him the world and teach him everything he needs to know". Quickly, he came up with another thought. "I think you would be a great role model. He would adore you."

Now Cersei stopped - and Petyr did the same, of course. In her facial features he thought he could see that she was thinking about his words.

"Do you really think so? He would adore me?"

Petyr nodded eagerly. "Of course. He'd deify you. I bet he would do anything you say. You both would get something out of it." Maybe like that he could do something for the little boy and get Cersei to treat him better. Somehow, he also had the hope that she would take care of him. Her smile didn't promise anything bad, he thought.

"Good night, Petyr," she said to him before disappearing behind one of the doors.

"Good night," he replied. Petyr thought he could briefly see Jaime's face in the door frame, but didn't think about it any further. He could walk the rest of the way on his own.

* * *

When Petyr was awakened a second time, he felt even more tired than the first time. This time, however, it was a larger hand that shook him. "Good morning, Petyr." The voice came from Elenya. "It is time for you to get dressed. You don't want to let the Lord wait, do you."

Petyr tried not to look too sleepy as he stood up. "Yes, I'll get ready. Thank you so much for waking me." Elenya smiled at him as if she knew about his nightly walk. "All right, I'll wait outside."

Petyr didn't take much time to worry about his clothes. After all, he only had two robes that looked exactly the same. Pretty ugly compared to the clothes Cersei and Jaime wore. More or less awake, he stepped out the door and looked at Elenya who led him to the Lord. "He certainly won't talk to you long or much. Lord Tywin is still mourning for his late wife, Lady Joanna. He loved her very much, you know."

Petyr nodded, but he didn't know what love actually was. He had heard stories about it, but he had never felt it so far. His nurse always said it was the most beautiful and important feeling in the world.

Elenya stopped so suddenly that Petyr almost bumped into her. "Behave well and don't ask any unpleasant questions." Her voice now had something lecturing about it. As if he didn't know how to behave. After all, he was already eight years old.

After a knock, Elenya opened the door and pushed Petyr in. The lord sat with his back to him, on a magnificent chair with red armrests, looking at the fire flickering in the fireplace. Should he say something now or simply remain silent? He chose the latter. In any case, the man didn't seem particularly welcoming. His blond hair was already thinning, Petyr could see that from behind. Nevertheless, he saw the same majestic nature in him that had immediately struck him about Cersei. The only difference was that Tywin Lannister was inevitably respected. And for that you didn't even have to look him in the eye or talk to him.

"Have you lost your tongue, boy?" The Lord's deep voice made Petyr flinch.

"No, Mylord."

He was glad that his own voice sounded more confident than he actually was. "I just wasn't sure if you wanted my company right now." Lord Tywin waved him closer with his hand without turning around.

"Come here, boy."

Petyr obediently walked around the chair and stopped in front of the lord.

"My name is Petyr."

Lord Tywin's eyes had the same green color as Cersei's and Jaime's, but there was no anger or joy or excitement in them. Petyr saw nothing but emptiness in them. Emptiness and grief. If he wasn't mistaken, they were also a little reddened. Had he cried?

"Why do you think your father sent you to me?"

"So that I may learn. My father told me that you were the smartest man in Westeros."

Tywin bent forward a little and looked deep into his eyes. Petyr did not avoid his gaze. "Do you think the same?" Petyr smiled a little.

"I can't say that yet. I like to form my own impression. But I have to say that it is a great honour for someone like me to be allowed to live here". Lord Tywin nodded and leaned back again.

"Do you think that with the help of House Lannister you can go places?" Petyr still returned the older man's gaze.

"I wouldn't say it like that. I believe that I can achieve something. But I have to do that on my own. With strong help, gold or self-confidence alone I can't achieve anything. It depends on the mind." Suddenly, Petyr felt much more secure. "Knowledge is power. I do not believe that you have achieved your success through your name. Stupidity puts you in your grave just as much as overweening self-confidence."

Lord Tywin had listened to him attentively the whole time. For a moment, Petyr thought he saw a smile on his face. "You are a clever boy. More than I could claim of other children." Did he mean Jaime and Cersei by that? "You can go now. We'll see each other again tomorrow. At the same time. Be punctual. I'll arrange for you to get something more appropriate to wear." Petyr smiled at him - an honest, childlike smile - and went out.

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**Please let me know your thoughts. :)**


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